Category Archives: Ground Meat

Whether you use homemade pesto or store-bought, this is an easy meatball meal that is a nice difference. Add the cheesy surprise and they are a hit.

I found this recipe on the I Breathe I’m Hungry website when we began our keto (low carb, high fat, moderate protein) diet about a year ago. She has so many varieties of meatballs that you could fix a different recipe every night for a month and still have a couple week’s worth yet to try. These have a piece of mozzarella cheese stuffed inside them.

They are simple to make and could probably even be baked in the oven if you wanted to. If you haven’t done so already, go ahead and get your easy pesto made.

Now let’s get started. I’m using ground turkey but you could use whatever ground meat you desire.

Combine the ground meat,

Add almond flour (if you’re a carb eater, you could use some breadcrumbs instead), egg, salt, pepper, and pesto in a bowl.

Combine it well and level it out. I like to make some kind of marks so I get relatively evenly sized meatballs. I think the original recipe makes this into only 10 meatballs but since there are four of us, I make an even 12. So first I divide it in half each direction so each section is about 1/4 the mixture.

Then each section is roughly divided into 3 sections.

Take one section (1/12 of the mixture) and flatten it out in your hand and place a piece of the cheese in the middle.Begin wrapping the meat around the cheese cube.

Close it up and make it round.

Heat oil in a skillet and fry the meatballs (about 4 minutes per side or until browned and cooked through).

I waited a little too long to turn them so they are more like ‘cakes’ than ‘balls’.

Versatile hearty salad made with meat, cheese, lettuce and whatever else you like.

It is the middle of March and ridiculously hot already here in Oklahoma. Okay, maybe it isn’t quite that hot but our air conditioner is in need of help, a.k.a. it isn’t cooling. At any rate, it is too hot to make something in the oven for dinner tonight, so I’m changing up my menu and having Taco Salad instead. It’s good to be flexible.

This salad can be fixed in a variety of ways to meet your dietary needs. I’ll be making it TWO ways today! Yep, two ways. Since Sean, Tiffany, and I are doing keto we need high fat, so I’ll be using 73% ground beef. Currently Michael cannot eat beef or he breaks out in a rash and has difficulty breathing, so I’ll fix his with ground turkey. The only other difference will be in what ‘chips’ we use. Michael will use plain tortilla chips and the rest of us will use pork rinds.

So, let’s get started.

Brown the ground meat.

When it is about half done, I like to season it with salt and pepper.

Now add remaining seasonings. This depends on your tastes. You can simply add a package of taco seasoning or a mix of seasonings like I do. Tiffany doesn’t like purchased taco seasoning, so I’ll use some onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, cumin, and chili powder.

Prepare your lettuce. Wash it if it is dirty. We like green leaf lettuce; it has nutrition unlike iceberg.

I put each ingredient in a separate bowl so that each individual can put on the toppings of their choosing. Since this meal was not on my menu when I shopped last week, I don’t have an avocado; thus, we’ll use some sour cream (which I don’t need if we have avocado).

Tiffany put a little carrot, green pepper, broccoli, and zucchini in the salad. Seriously, a little of each, like a tablespoon or two. Most times it is just plain lettuce. At dinner, everyone will build their salad to their liking. This is mine. Mmmm, mmmm!

Serve with nacho tortilla chips, plain tortilla chips, or to keep it keto use pork rinds.

This casserole is a bit like the Enchilada Pie but low carb. It satifies that desire for Mexican food.

This is another wonderful recipe from Genaw. I usually put off making it because it is baked twice: once for the ‘crust’ and then once for the casserole cheese to melt. But when we eat it, we always remark about how good it is.

Set out 4 ounces of cream cheese to soften. Beat the softened cream cheese and eggs until smooth.

Very meaty bowls of deliciousness with lots of cheese!

This is a recipe I found years ago, shortly after I’d started my first low-carb diet. I copied it out of a book from the library but have been tempted to call it pizza bowls because it has all the things I love on pizza. It’s just that it doesn’t have enough sauce to really be a pizza bowl and of course, there’s nothing replacing the dough/crust. In the end, I opted to just leave it as meaty casserole.

So this is pretty simple and doesn’t take very long to accomplish either. It is made in individual serving bowls, so can be made to order. Thus, the kids and I use ground beef and Michael gets ground turkey.

So begin by browning the ground meat.

Season it with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder.

(This pan already had some grease from cooking some bacon or steakumms on it earlier. I didn’t bother to get rid of it but probably should’ve since my meat is a fatty one. )

Add diced tomatoes, which I choose to puree with a stick blender.

(I add a tiny bit of baking soda so that there is less chance of heartburn later.)

Meanwhile, make sixteen meatballs out of the Sweet Italian Sausage links. I don’t know how large the links are generally but these are rather large. I ended up only using one and a half.

I think I’ll make twice as many but half as big, next time, since it is difficult to cut them when eating them. Smaller would definitely be better. Who knows, maybe there are only supposed to be four that size.

Next add additional ‘toppings’. I add canned mushrooms and diced green pepper to Michael’s and mine. Sean and Tiffany do not care for those items. Next comes pepperoni, which I cut into quarters, so it’s more bite-sized.

Top with the ground meat, after the tomatoes have thickened. (About 5-8 minutes)

I like to put some pepperoni before and some after the ground meat.

Then top with cheese.

I like to put them all on a rimmed baking sheet so that it is easier to move them.

Bake at 400º for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

It’s supposed to have the shredded parmesan cheese added before baking but I always forget until just about the time I go to put it in the oven and then I’m in too big of a hurry, and decide to just wait until later.

This is a cheesey, low-carb, complete meal in one pan, and is quick to throw together but should have some time to bake.

This week’s recipe is so quick and easy that I forget that it needs to go into the oven and bake for 40 minutes. Yes! 40 minutes. However, when I forget that one little thing and need it to be done sooner, I just finish it off on the stove, which is what I did when I made it the other day and took pictures to share with you today.

Brown your ground meat with the diced onions, celery, and mushrooms. Once again I used ground turkey instead of ground beef. Since I’m on keto diet, I add a little coconut oil to up my fat content a little.

Now, I made the mistake of just dumping in the drained canned mushrooms. I knew better when immediately after doing it but it was too late. My kids, even though they are grown, do not like big pieces of sliced mushrooms-I should have diced them too.

If you are following a low-fat diet, then drain your meat. If not, drain off whatever is excessive to you. As I mentioned already, I added a bit of coconut oil to mine since I’m following a keto diet.

Add in the remaining ingredients and combine.

It is at this point that you put it in the oven to bake until it’s nice and bubbly. SO, if you put it in a 2-2.5 quart greased casserole dish, it will take about 40 minutes. WHEN I remember to allow enough time to bake it, I prep it in my cast iron skillet and just put the skillet into the oven. My skillet has more surface area than my 2.5 quart casserole dish, so it takes a little less time for it to bake and get all bubbly.

However, as I mentioned earlier, when I forget to allow enough time to bake it, I simply lower the heat on my burner, put a lid on the skillet, and cook until it is bubbly.

Serve!

Those nice browned bits are because I cooked it on the stovetop and it got a bit stuck but oh so yummy.

This creamy ground meat soup is easily customized to your diet, be it low fat or high fat, with just a few tweaks. It is a low carb soup, full of flavor.

I found this soup over three years ago, somewhere online. I must’ve been on a low carb diet at the time because this one was both low fat and low carb. Now, this doesn’t exactly fit my current diet but it is close enough to adjust with just a few easy changes. The low carb works but the low fat does not, as keto is a high fat diet because you are in a state that your body is burning fat.

The recipe calls for ground turkey and this is what I used. However ground turkey is a low fat meat. Consequently, I added a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil as I was browning it. As it browns, add salt, pepper, and onion powder.

If you are doing a low fat diet, drain off any fat.

Add chicken broth, basil, and veggies. When I made this the other day, I was out of fresh broccoli so I used a bag of frozen broccoli, cauliflower, carrot medley.

Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 20 minutes, until the veggies are tender or how you prefer them. (We do not like our cooked veggies crunchy.)

We also do not like big chunks of vegetables, so I break them up a bit.

Now add heavy cream, half and half, or fat-free half and half depending on the level of fat you need in your diet. Also add in the shredded cheese at this time.

Remove the pot from the heat and stir until the cheese is melted. DO NOT return it to heat or the cheese will probably separate and not be as creamy; it will still be edible but clumpy and maybe a little rubbery.

1 1/2 cups each broccoli and cauliflower OR a small bag broccoli, cauliflower, carrot medley

1 1/2 cups heavy cream, half and half, OR fat-free half and half

8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

Brown the ground meat, season with salt, pepper, and onion powder. (If you need it low fat, remove the drippings but if you use ground turkey and you need the fat, add a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil.)

Add chicken broth, basil, and veggies.

Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered for about 20 minutes, until vegetables are desired tenderness.

Versatile soup with lots of flavor from roasted veggies that can either be made deliciously fatty (aka fat bomb) for those on keto, low fat, or somewhere in between.

Today’s recipe is a wonderful soup that has lots of flavor added by roasting veggies. The first time I made it, I didn’t have any brussels sprouts and it was good like that as well. This time I had some frozen brussels sprouts to use. You can eliminate whatever veggies you want or substitute veggies. But this combination was really good.

There’s a lot of chopping to be done, so be sure to give yourself enough time to do so. If I were smart, I’d chop the veggies earlier in the day, so I don’t have to be concerned about time. We don’t like big crunchy veggies in our cooked food, so it takes me a little longer.

Begin by preheating the oven to 350º. Cut the brussels sprouts in half or even quarters, if they are large. The ones I have today are small so I only cut them in half. Dice mushrooms into large pieces. I used about 6-8 mushrooms.

Dice a large bell pepper. I like the yellow or orange because they add a little color contrast and different colored foods have different nutrients. I got a good deal on the mixed color peppers, so I used an orange one today. I cut it into about the same size chunks as my mushrooms.

Dice about 1/3 of a medium large red onion.

Combine these four veggies on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with melted coconut oil, olive oil, or oil of your choosing. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix them up and spread the evenly on the pan.

Roast for 25-30 minutes. Remove when they are as cooked as you like them.

Meanwhile, brown your ground meat over medium low heat. We used ground turkey which is leaner than ground beef, so we added a bit of coconut oil to it as we cooked it.

While that is browning, get to dicing the celery. We dice our celery pretty finely. Once again, we don’t like crunchy veggies, so these are rather small. Also mince the garlic.

Add the celery and garlic to the cooking ground meat. If you are on keto, do NOT drain the fat. You may even need to add a little if you used a lean meat like we did.

Once the celery is pretty well cooked, add the broth, tomatoes (which we will puree next time with the hand blender before adding because, we don’t like chunks ), tomato paste, oregano, bay leaf, and either cayenne or chili powder.

Combine and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes. (We accidentally put in too much tomato paste! Way too much!)

Stir in the roasted veggies and chopped parsley and serve.

And because everything is better with cheese, I added just a bit of freshly grated Parmesan on top of my bowl.

This is a lot like the filling I put in my Egg Rolls with ground meat instead of chicken breast. Since it is not in a wrapper, it is low carb.

I got this recipe from peaceloveandlowcarb.com recently and I loved it. We’ve made it a few times already and I still really like it. It is also really easy to make. Much easier to make than egg rolls, too.

Start by heating sesame oil in a large skillet.

Add the minced garlic, diced onion, and white part of the green onions, sliced and sauté until onions are translucent.

Cook meat through. Then add the sliced cabbage (or package of coleslaw). I add one shredded medium carrot to my sliced cabbage because that is what is in a package of coleslaw veggies. You don’t have to if you don’t want to, it’ll be less carbs without it.Add the Tamari sauce or soy sauce, and rice wine vinegar. I don’t have rice wine vinegar so I use the seasoned rice vinegar I do have.

When the cabbage is wilted, it is ready to serve.

As you can see, the cabbage melds right in with the meat. At first it looks overpowering but it really shrinks up.

Serve with sliced green onion tops and toasted sesame seeds.

I served it with tortilla chips and pork rinds last night. I meant to add some shrimp to it and forgot all about it. I bet it would really be good though. There’s always next time.

An easy appetizer with a few simple ingredients. It’s gluten-free and keto.

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I remember having sausage balls at parties. I only made them once or twice quite a few years ago and that was with Bisquick. I recently came across this recipe over on KetoSizeMe for sausage balls that are gluten-free and legal for keto and I realized what a perfect snack these are.

You simply combine all the ingredients and drop on a cookie sheet and bake at 350º for 16-20 minutes.

A tomato-based meat sauce with some of the acidity removed.

I’m going to share my “recipe” for spaghetti today. It’s one of those, not-really-a-recipe, kind of recipes though. My mom taught me to make this and she never used a recipe either.

Actually, I use this same sauce, with only slight changes, for lasagna too. Don’t be scared off by the zoodles (the green strands). This is my normal spaghetti sauce that I serve over angel hair pasta but since I’m on keto right now, we are having it over the strips of sauteed zucchini.

So this is super simple. Start by browning one pound of ground meat. I use ground turkey right now. Season with some salt and pepper. Add one 6 ounce can of tomato paste. Then fill the empty can with water and add it as well; add one more can of water and combine.

Mix it in well and add 16 ounces of plain tomato sauce.

Add a sprinkling of onion powder and a dash of garlic powder. Simmer.

Now the important thing is to add about 1/8th of a teaspoon of baking soda. Stir it around. It will bubble up and remove some of the acidicness. (Yeah, that’s probably not even a word. ) If you cook this in a cast iron skillet like I did, don’t let it simmer very long with the baking soda in it or it will darken on top. It doesn’t do this in any other skillet or pan that I know of.

Serve over pasta or zoodles or whatever you choose.

Here I added some sauted onions, peppers, and mushrooms on top, as well as shredded cheese. Once stirred altogether, it looks like this.